


Is it your hand or a rope around my neck?

by Reichenbachstag



Category: Le Fantôme de l'Opéra | Phantom of the Opera - Gaston Leroux, Phantom of the Opera - Lloyd Webber
Genre: Angst, Canon Divergence, Emotional Manipulation, Explicit Consent, F/M, First Kiss, First Time, Mentions of Murder, Poor Raoul, Religious Imagery, The author made himself sad
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-22
Updated: 2020-05-22
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:47:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,426
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24326743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Reichenbachstag/pseuds/Reichenbachstag
Summary: In which Erik does not wake Christine with organ playing. No unmasking and she stays under his spell.Hijinks ensue.
Relationships: Christine Daaé/Erik | Phantom of the Opera, Raoul de Chagny & Christine Daaé
Comments: 2
Kudos: 15





	1. Chapter 1

When she faints he doesn’t know wether it’s from exhaustion or possibly fear.  
Gently he catches her before her body can slip anywhere near the floor and in a swift motion he carries her to the make pretend heap of pillows and blankets.  
He’d arranged it beforehand knowing that if she were to find out about his true sleeping arrangements she surely would flee in fear. 

Only after he’s done draping the sheets over her does he realise how unseemly this is and how selfish he was.  
After all she gave a stunning performance on such a short notice, reunited with boy who used to chase her over the beach Perros and then she let herself be dragged down and across the lake.  
He’s given her the confirmation that her angel of music is in fact a man.  
A man who desires her.  
And did she not keen into his touch as though he was her saving grace?  
Did she not make it clear to him that she too desires him? 

He needs her word or he will not believe it.

His thoughts are spiralling and he can hardly play the organ or the violin with his favourite pastime asleep next to him.  
And she is only wearing her dressing gown as well. He can almost taste the bitter shame but he forces his breathing to remain calm.  
And so he sits by her side until she stirs. 

The first thing she asks of him - after he reassures her that he is what she believed to be an angel music - is his name. 

Erik.  
“Swedish sounding”, she remarks to which he remarks that he hails from France nonetheless.  
After little talk he offers to play her some of his Don Juan and as his fingers slide across the keys to play the last accords he can feel her fingers ghosting over the rim of his mask.

The organ makes a dissatisfactory sound as he turns around to grasp her wrist hard only to let them go a split second later.  
He pleas for forgiveness and explains how she would not be able to feel the same when making music with him if she knew what lies underneath. 

She complies and nods but he notices the spark from earlier has blown out and merely asks if she wants him to take her back to the dressing room.

She nods again.


	2. Chapter 2

Their lessons don’t come to a halt after her performance in Hannibal but he goes back to being a mere voice in the shadows of her dressing room again.   
To say she is frustrated with this would be comically underwhelming - in her mind she practically begs for some other sign of him.  
Pride forbid that she ever voices that wish.   
Raoul tells her of strange notes he and quite a lot of other people around the opera house have been receiving, all of them concerning her. Demands that she is to sing the countess in the upcoming production of Il Muto were made but the managers chose not to comply.

It isn’t the sign she had hoped for.

And then she is onstage next to Charlotta whose own voice is overshadowed by horrid croaking noises shooting across the room and just when the situation seems to diffuse she sees a pair of feet swinging above her, can almost hear the creaking noise of the rope before the screams of the audience reach her ear.

Raoul is sprinting toward her through the ranks - reaches out to pull her close and when she takes his hand her first instinct is to go higher far from the cellars but instead she drags him into the stream of people running for the door.  
Out on the Rue Scribe she voices her concerns, her more than sneaking suspicion who has done this unspeakable thing.   
Her childhood friend dismisses her fear but he pulls her close and that is all she needs to feel safe - be it just for a moment.  
Then there’s Meg wading through the only slowly dispersing crowd who just grabs her by the wrist and drags her back inside only to ask her if Christine’s alright.   
They both know what the angel has done. 

What he’s done for his muse and his muse alone.

After the horrid murder there comes a time where she finds herself as relieved as everyone to not hear of her angel.  
Eventually that relief turns into dread of what might happen, if he is going to take her down with him once more and this time for good.

During the masquerade ball Christine cannot help but notice how Raoul looks at her, how eager is to share each dance with her.   
What a poor fool in love he is. What a beautiful fool.   
Just before she can decide wether she likes his attempts at wooing her her ears are filled once more with the screams of the people around her.  
Erik tosses the score at the managers and does not leave without reminding her of her place.  
Strangely enough that is more like the signs she had hoped for than anything else he’s done since she awoke in his home.

The second the managers come to her with rehearsal plans she refuses the role Erik has written for her ad instead asks for mere three days of. To visit her father’s grave in Perros Christine remarks knowing well that the walls have ears.

As always she hears him before she sees him - this time it is his violin play and not his voice. It is achingly similar time to her father’s.   
The angels voice is full of hurt when he asks why she refuses to bless his cursed form by granting his wish to sing his Don Juan.   
Christine does not answer him for the longest time and when she finally does she merely asks how he could do such a terrible thing, how he ever could.   
Erik does not respond but instead steps closer and guides her hand to his mask.  
When she lifts it they both gasp.  
The skin is not as pale as the rest of him but instead red and jagged like scar tissue. There barely even seems to be enough skin to span over his cheek- and jawbone making what is there look unnaturally taught.   
Were it not for the unsymmetrically full lips his sunken eye, fallen in cheek and misshapen nostril would make the right half of his face look entirely like a skull. 

The man in front of her opens his mouth to talk of the past this face has brought him but out comes the voice of an angel, her angel.   
And that angel in the flesh apologises for how prone to violence he’s become, how it is all he’s ever known and how his rage overthrew him eventually.   
But he also remarks that he has only done it for his Christine, how he cannot bear to not see her succeed, how jealous he gets when he has to watch the Vicomte practically fondle her with his gaze.

Her head is spinning with how much there is to process at once. Can she be sure to not have tempted her angel to fall back into the violence of his youth, had it not been her who asked of him to rid himself of his mask and therefore of his last shred of humanity?   
His voice is still her ears - unwavering - when she steps in to close the distance between them.  
She places her hands on both sides of his face and kisses him while he is still lulling her in his voice.  
What now comes out his throat does not resemble an angel but rather a dying man. He lifts his arms as though to touch her but lets them fall back to his shaking sides instead. 

Then Christine is out of breath and let’s go of Erik who promptly falls to his knees.   
In his eyes is only fear when he hectically pulls the ring off his pinky finger.   
And Christine remembers how she had longed for her angel to be a man who could court and protect her - is this not what she wanted?

She nods when shaking hands find hers pressing the ring against her fingertip in a silent question.

Barely seconds after he is on his feet again touching her forehead with his - waiting for her to lean in, to give him a sign.   
And she does.  
He kisses her with oaths of love. His hands gently find her sides this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t really have anything to add to this except that the murder obviously it is not Christines fault and that comments are always appreciated.

**Author's Note:**

> Mostly musical canon I only added very small details from Lerouxs book.
> 
> Also I apologise for the pretentious title I couldn’t think of one for the life of me.


End file.
